My first build. I need a ton of advice.

Fetch

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Jun 4, 2009
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APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE:
The next few days.
BUDGET RANGE: $1,000.
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, surfing the internet, ipod music storage.

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: any
PARTS PREFERENCES: any

OVERCLOCKING: Yes / No /
Maybe

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1280x1024

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: This would be my first build. I'd like something with a gaming emphasis that I can expand later as needed. Thanks for the help.
 

fullmetall

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Jan 7, 2009
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$1000 range will be a good build for AMD.

$1200 will get you a i7 core.

i'd say AM3 would be good enough. I will get a list going on another post in about 10-15min


 

rooseveltdon

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Jan 18, 2009
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What you are doing won't require 1000 dollars your activities are not very demanding anyway,you want to go with a quad since that seems to be the way of the future right now, you can build a nice phenom 2 x4 955 set up for that price,you won't need cross fire (honestly even the 955 is overkill) you want a nice graphics card that will last you a while your resolution isnt very high....honestly i'd save some money by buying a tri core pheom 2 x3 720 BE,a 4870 or gtx260,a western digital raptor for your operating system/programs and a large drive perhaps a 640 gb or 1 TB drive for your music and movies, you should not worry about crossfire or sli but thats just me i prefer single card solutions that way i don't have to spend too much on power supplies,get a nice aluminum case from cooler master or lian li, and then the money you save use it to get a new and better monitor (a gamer in 2009 should not be playing on nothing less than a 1680x1050 resolution) all that should fit within your budget if you plan on buying your parts from newegg.com....you can also go the intel route but their 775 socket wont receive any upgrades and the i5 does not come out till later so amd is the best price to performance at this point. just my two cents.
 

fullmetall

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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151173
SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150359
XFX HD-489A-ZDFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit DDR5


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146868
mushkin HP 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)


http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.198225
1. Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit
2. Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB


http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.203158
1. ASUS M4A78T-E AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX
2. AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3


Comes out to $1038 but, if you add in Mail-in rebates, it should be below $1k.


If you wanted it lower, that would include in taking crossfire option away and getting a 650tx instead or the other option is, getting the 4870 1gb sapphire, keeping the 750tx and being able to crossfire later.

now, I know you only have a 1280x1024 so, in the near future, look to upgrading that aswell. I'd probably drop the 4890 and go with the 4870 instead.


I was also thinking of switching out the x4 955 since it's only gaming is what you asked for and getting the x3 720 pII combo with a 790gx motherboard. Probably also another best bang for your money aswell.
 

rooseveltdon

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Jan 18, 2009
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Full metal pretty much nailed it, go with the 720 and over clock it, and save some money on a cheaper motherboard and you might save just enough money to get a new monitor (get the 4870 gpu)
 

drunknmunkys

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May 10, 2009
346
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18,780
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.203011
AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor
ASUS M4A78T-E AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
INSANE COMBO

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.199397
COOLER MASTER RC-690
COOLER MASTER UCP RS700-AAAAA3 700W

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185093
Scythe MUGEN-2

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227297
OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106276
LITE-ON Black 18X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA DVD-ROM Drive

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102810
SAPPHIRE 100259L Radeon HD 4870 512MB 256-bit GDDR5

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236051
ASUS VH226H Black 21.5" 2ms(GTG) HDMI Widescreen 16:9 Full HD 1080P LCD Monitor

Total: 928$ - 45$ MIR = 883$

EDIT: man I was waay too slow on that build
 

Fetch

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Jun 4, 2009
13
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18,510
$1038 will be okay. I think I'll go ahead and order this afternoon. Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate it.